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February 11, 2019 Content Chat Recap: Creative Briefs 101: Why You Need to Use Them and What to Include

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When it comes to creative projects, you’ll likely need all hands on deck with designers, copywriters, marketing and/or PR pros and more to orchestrate a successful launch. As should be expected, projects can quickly spiral with so many parties involve, especially if there is a lack of communication. One remedy for this is a creative brief, but how you approach a creative brief could make or break your project.

In this #ContentChat, we discuss cases where creative briefs are needed, what you should include, and other ways to troubleshoot the process and ensure a successful launch.

Q1: What are some drawbacks to using creative briefs? And what are situations wherein you wouldn’t use them?

Creative briefs can feel time intensive and rigid.

When people don’t see the value in creative briefs (or don’t understand what they are), they are more hesitant or refuse to fill them out. This causes delays and could require a different, less versed person to fill out the form, potentially sacrificing the end result of the project.

Brevity is key, but often difficult to attain.

Depending on the scale of your project or familiarity of the team, the brief may not be worth the time investment.

Q2: What are some of the benefits of using creative briefs? What are the key reasons why you use creative briefs as part of your content marketing workflow?

Despite the above drawbacks, briefs are a critical and often necessary way to make sure everyone is aligned.

The brief also ensures the project has been fully thought through, and that everyone knows (and agrees to) their role and the scope of the project.

Q3: What are some of the primary obstacles you encounter in the creative brief process?

Related to the answers in Q1, it can be difficult to get SMEs or clients to fill out the form thoroughly (or at all).

One workaround is scheduling an intake call with the client to discuss/complete the brief. You can even get them to verbally fill out the form without them knowing.

Poor or siloed communication can lead to a misalignment between teams or in regards to the scope of the project.

Competing interests between departments or roles can also muddy the process if there is not open communication or if people try to micromanage one another.

A deeper issue could be if the company does not know their audience or have a documented content strategy.

Q4: What are the key items every creative brief must include?

There’s a handful of essentials: project description, goal, definition for success, timeline, design requirements, team roles and approval process.

Q5: What are some optional items you might want to include in a creative brief?

Remember that your brief should be, well, brief. But there’s some additional elements you can include in your brief to streamline the creation process. These include approved content to reference, examples of similar content, required messaging or formatting requirements.

Q6: Do you use the same creative brief for all your content marketing projects? Or do you have a few different creative briefs for specific content types?

Having a universal brief can save you time and keep you organized.

But a standardized brief may not be adequate to prepare you for all project types. Webinars, for example, can need a greater level of detail. You could create variations to suit different needs, but to Jennifer’s comment above, be sure to keep things organized.

Q7: For those of you who work as freelancers or in an agency, what’s your one-sentence pitch for marketers who don’t like creative briefs to encourage them to do so—for your sake?

Reference these inspiring words the next time you need to convince a client to fill out a creative brief.

We’ll check back in with Carmen later but it sounds like she’s on a good path.

Q8: In our last few minutes of today’s #ContentChat share your creative brief tips or questions!

To recap Bernie and Derek: Ask questions until you’re satisfied, be open to having others ask questions, keep communication open, and keep the interests of every party in mind.

About Alek Irvin

Alek Irvin is a content marketing professional with a rich history in social media management, executive thought leadership development, and media relations. As a consultant at Erika Heald Marketing Consulting, he creates human-focused content and thought leadership platforms that help brand leaders connect and engage with their communities. Alek has worked with a range of startups and Fortune 500 companies across the B2B technology and consumer spaces, including IBM, Dell Technologies, Hitch Works, Emtrain, Integrate, and Frameable. Connect with him on Twitter @AlekIrvin.

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